THE FORGOTTEN SON-IN-LAW

Chapter Five

Selene was terrified. Her hands shook as she touched the crest. She recognized it faintly from a history book: the symbol of a long-fallen dynasty.

Julian, backed by the bribed traitor on the Harlow board, made his move. He accused Selene of negligence, pushing to have her stripped of authority. Panic spread through the room.

But then Adrian rose from his silent seat at the back. “Julian Black,” he said smoothly, “before you finish your performance, perhaps you should explain why your men were found loitering near the Harlow warehouse on the night of the fire.”

He tossed photographs on the table—evidence collected in secret.

The board gasped. Julian’s face was drained of color.

That night, Selene walked into the garden, her heart heavy. Adrian found her there, and for once, silence wasn’t suffocating. Instead, it was gentle.

“Why are you doing all this?” she whispered.

“For you,” Adrian answered softly. “Even if you never believe it.”

Their eyes met, lingering far too long. Selene felt herself leaning in unconsciously—but at the last second, she pulled away, her heart pounding in fear of what she was starting to feel.

The traitor among the Harlows was unmasked. It was Mr. Halden, Victor’s long-trusted advisor. Adrian exposed him with undeniable proof—secret accounts, stolen data, private meetings with Julian.

Victor was shattered. “How long…?”

“Long enough,” Adrian said coldly. “But he was only a pawn. The real hand moves elsewhere.”

Halden spat as guards dragged him away. “You don’t know what you’re up against, Adrian Cole. You’ll be crushed like the rest of them.”

At last, Adrian decided the time for hiding was over. He summoned Selene to his study. On the table lay the crest Eleanor had discovered, polished and gleaming.

“This,” he said, “is the mark of my family. Once, we ruled a kingdom beyond these borders. We were betrayed, hunted, scattered. I am the last son.”

Selene’s breath caught. “And now?”

Adrian’s eyes burned with resolve. “Now, I rise again. And those who seek to destroy me will learn what it means to awaken a forgotten son-in-law.”

Adrian’s revelation reverberated like thunder in Selene’s mind. She struggled to reconcile the man she thought she knew with the heir of a fallen dynasty. But before she could find her bearings, new storms brewed on the horizon.

News spread that rival families had caught whispers of Adrian’s identity. Old enemies from beyond the borders stirred, eager to crush a bloodline thought long dead.

Despite her confusion, Selene found herself drawn to Adrian’s strength, his unflinching honesty. Yet she could not admit it—not to her parents, not even to herself. Instead, she poured her doubts into a secret journal, hidden beneath her pillow.

Her entries betrayed the truth: she was beginning to fear not Adrian’s danger, but her own heart.

Julian Black, humiliated by Adrian’s exposure of Halden, sought darker allies. He traveled under cover of night to a crumbling manor at the city’s edge. There, he met with a foreign emissary draped in silks of crimson and black.

“I will give you the son-in-law’s head,” Julian promised. “But I want Selene—and the Harlow fortune—in return.”

The emissary’s smile was cold. “Then let us bind our interests in blood.”

Victor Harlow, though shaken, summoned Adrian privately. “You claim to protect us, yet you keep secrets that put us all at risk. Prove yourself, Adrian. Take charge of the next shipment and guard it with your life.”

It was a test—of competence, and of loyalty. Adrian accepted without hesitation, aware that assassins already lurked in wait.

The shipment night was thick with fog. Adrian led a small team of guards, every sense sharp. The attack came suddenly—masked mercenaries swarming from the shadows. Blades flashed, guns roared.

Adrian fought like a man possessed, cutting through the ambush with precision and fury. But then he saw him—Julian, watching from a rooftop, smirking at the chaos.

When Adrian returned bloodied but victorious, Selene rushed to his side despite herself. She bandaged his wounds, hands trembling. In the silence between them, a truth became undeniable: he was no longer just her family’s burden. He was her protector.

And perhaps, something more.

Eleanor, jealous of Adrian’s rising influence, whispered poison into Selene’s ear. “Do not be fooled, sister. He is dangerous. He is using you, just as he is using Father.”

Selene wanted to dismiss her, but Eleanor’s words lingered. Was she falling into Adrian’s trap—or uncovering his heart?

Under the moonlit sky, Adrian stood alone by the koi pond, the same place he once faced an assassin. Selene found him there, her curiosity overcoming fear.

“What do you want from us?” she asked softly.

Adrian turned, his eyes fierce yet vulnerable. “Not your wealth. Not your power. Only this—I will protect you, Selene, even if it costs me everything.”

Her heart raced. For the first time, she believed him.

The emissary Julian had courted revealed himself as Lord Kael, a warlord from beyond the borders. He commanded legions of mercenaries and carried ancient grudges against Adrian’s bloodline.

Kael’s arrival in the city marked the beginning of a silent war. And Julian, blind with ambition, welcomed it.

As danger mounted, Selene’s defiance softened. One evening, while Adrian taught her self-defense in the courtyard, their laughter broke the tension that had bound them for months. She slipped, and he caught her—his arms strong, his gaze intense.

The world held still. Selene’s lips parted, but before she could speak, Eleanor appeared, her glare sharp as daggers.

The moment was lost—but the spark was lit.

Seeing Adrian’s growing strength, Victor made a startling declaration: “From today, you are not merely Selene’s husband. You are my right hand.”

Gasps rippled through the household. Eleanor’s fury burned, Selene’s heart pounded—and Julian, upon hearing the news, clenched his fists in rage.

The tides were shifting.